My Type 4 Hair – Big Chop – 2017

January 28, 2017

Hi lovelies!

Ok, this post is super emotional for me because I CUT ALL OF MY HAIR. Yes! I did the big chop! Now, some may say I am being overly dramatic but I do not think I am. I’ll run you through a history of my hair first.

I have always had really really full and thick hair (legit every hair stylist absolutely disliked doing my hair because it would take them ages!) but length is something I always struggled with.

I have been relaxing my hair for as long as I can remember.

My hair was stagnant and never grew past a certain point.

I always held on to length for dear life LOL so, that meant I was always very adamant to get a trim even if my ends were crying for it.

I did not know how to take care of my hair point. blank. period.

In May 2013, I had been without a relaxer/perm for approximately a year (May 2012 – May 2013) and I felt there was no point holding on to my hair as it was totally damaged at this point. So, I took the plunge and I cut all my relaxed hair completely off; I did the big chop. I felt liberated as you’d expect. It felt like a huge weight had been lifted off and I immediately became a product junkie. It was like a new life had begun and I was excited about it but that lasted only for so long!

About 6 months in, I got really impatient because there was no significant growth, I started to really want a relaxer but I also wanted to wait it out desperately. My hair was not easy to manage, I felt like there was no progress so 5 months later, graduation was coming along and my mind was set on “this pictures will last a lifetime, I need my edges and leave out to be SNATCHED!” My confidence level was on legit 0. I did not know how to wear my “natural” hair (I know, crazy!) There was no turning back, I had convinced myself that I had to get a relaxer. So, April 2014… I got a relaxer, my leave out was perf and I was happy! 🙂

I embarked on this “relaxed” hair journey and within a year, it was fulfilling. My hair was the longest it had ever been in life. I started to feel like the potential my hair always had was starting to take form. I was obsessed. I cut out heat completely, I sealed my hair every night, I took my treatments seriously, I did not comb unnecessarily, I stuck with closures and wigs the entire time. My hair had flourished and I was elated.

In April 2016, exactly 2 years after my first relaxer post big chop, I started to itch to go back on the natural hair journey. It was an everyday battle, I was constantly thinking about pros and cons. It was exhausting! In the summer of 2016, I ended up getting what I know now to be my FINAL relaxer. I absolutely could not stand my limp hair. I craved volume. I wanted natural hair for myself and my health.

Transitioning months were absolutely difficult, my hair broke like crazy, it was appalling. It made me sad each wash day. I could not take it anymore so, after 6 months of transitioning (June 2016 – December 2016), I chopped it all off in January 2017! Oh gosh, it was not easy but I have to look at the bigger picture and it is hair. Hair will ALWAYS grow as long as you have breath.

So far, I am confident in my decision and happy about it too. I cannot wait to fully settle into this journey and learn more about my hair! Also, one thing I absolutely love about natural hair is how diverse it is. I can get a blow out and BOOM! It’s straight hair all over again!

Any advise and comments on natural hair are all welcome! Cannot wait to hear from you!